Parachute pack and harness



F. SMITH.

PARACHUTE PACK AND HARNESS. APPLICATION FILED 050.31, 1919.

Patented Feb. 8, 1921.

r 2 SHEETS-SHEET I- mvsmon ATTORNEYS.

F. SMITH. v PARACHUTE PACK AND HARNESS.

APPLICATION FILED DEC;3I, I919. 1,367,723. Patented Feb. 8,1921.

2 SHEETS-SHEET 2;

UNITED STATES rATEN r o-FFlCE.

rLoYnsm'rH, or onrcnoo, ILLINOIS, assreivon 'ro morn smrnnnnrnr. EQUIP- mnn'r country, A oonronarron or rumors.

rnnnonu'rn PACK hm) HARNESS.

To all whom it may concern.

Be ,it known that I, FLOYD Stir TH, a citizen of the United States, residing at Chi" cage, county of Gook, State of Illinois, have invented a certain new and useful Improvement in Parachute Packs and Harness, and

. declare the following to be a full, clear, and

' 246,999 led July 27, 1918, and 293,047 filed nears the ground.

April 29, 1919, I have disclosed a novelform of pack for parachutes and harness for su porting the pack on an aviators back. he present invention has for itsobject to improve certain'details of the pack and harness disclosed inthe aforesaid applications so as to improve the construction. thereof, simplify and make more convenlent the attachment to and removal of the pack from the body of the aviator, and leave the aviator with more freedom of action when wearing the pack than has heretofore been the case.

A further object of the present invention is ,to produce a simple and novel harness ofthe type specified which may be readily adjusted so as to adapt it to fit persons differlng greatly in size.

. A further object of the present invention is to produce a simple and novel form'of connection between the supporting strapsor cables of the parachute and the harness which will permit the parachutist readily to release himself from the parachute as he The various features of novelty whereby my invention 1s characterized W111 heremafter he pointed out with particularity in ing a pack and harness arranged in accordthe claims; but, for a full understanding of my invention and of its objects and advantages, reference may be had to the following. detailed description taken in connection with the accompanying drawings, wherein:

Figure 1 is a side view of an aviator wearance with the present invention;

Fig. 2 is a front view and 1 Fig. 3 is a rear view of the aviator equipped as in Fig. 1;

Fig. 4 is a view of the inner side of the such as will pack when it is opened out flat;

Specification of iltetters Patent Application filed December 31, 1919. Serial no. 348,622.

5 is a section taken approximately on line 55 ofFig. 4 on anenlarged scale;

Fig. 6 is a fragment of the harness including a part of-the breast strap and the adjacent part ofthe suspending strapor swing;

Fig.

Fig. 8 is a side elevation, on an enlarged scale, of the ring adapted to'be grasped by the aviator to open up the pack;

Fig. 9-1s a section taken approximately on 7 is a aasn (in line 7 7 a Fig. 6;

. e Patented F-eb. 8', 1921.

liile 99 of Fig. 8, buton a. larger scale than Fig 8', I i ig. 10 is a fragment of a modification of the harness, including a section of the strap adapted to extend across the lower part of the body of the wearer and the adjacent part of the suspending strap orswing;

Fig- 11 is a view partly in side elevation and partly in section of an improved form of snap hook for attaching the harness to the supporting strapsofj the parachute; and

Fig. 12 is an enlarged section taken approximately on line 1212 of Fig. 11. The construction of the pack is best shown in- Fig. 4, the same comprising a rectangular piece of flexible material, preferably waterproof fabric, having sideflaps, 2 and 3, and top and bottom flaps,- 4 and 5, respectively. a

The pack is the same as that illustrated in my aforesaid application SerialNo. 293,047

except that there is a rectangular wire frame, 6, laid upon the rectangular central portion and secured thereto so as to register with the marginal edges of the latter. Tins frame serves to give to the pack when folded about a parachute a defimte comparatively -flat shape which prevents the pack from projecting out too far behind the. aviator. The frame may bereinforced by braces extending across the corners-as indicated at 7.

The frame may also be cross-braced from side to side, one such brace being shown at 8.

In packs of this kind the harness is attached to the central rectangular-section, 1, and

with the frame present, it is possible to attach the harness ingsuch a way that the weight-of the pack and its inclosed para.- chute will be transferred to the harness through the frame; thus insuring greatersecurity of support and less danger of accidental tearing of the pack than where the ist when he is descending with the parachute, it is also highly desirable that the harness be such as not to cramp the wearer or interfere with. his freedom of movementwhile carrying the pack or while descending with the parachute. In accordance with my invention 1 so construct the harness that the weight of thev descending parachutist is adapted to be borne by a swing-in which he is comfortably seated in such a manner as to retain freedom of movement for his legs; the wearer of the harness being therefore comfortable and having the free use of his legs at all times whether walking about,

seated, or descending with the parachute.

The swing is made up of two straps, 9 and 10, extending downwardly in front from the shoulders of the wearer to about the hips tie the swing in place I employ connecting means between "the lower ends of the approximately vertical' front members, which connecting means extend across the lowermost part of the trunk of the wearer, instead ofin thevicinity of the waist or around the legs as has heretofore been customary. In

"the arrangement shown, the connecting means consists of two wings fastened togethe'r at their meeting ends by a snap hook, 12, or the likel- Each wing is preferably made up of two straps, 13 and 14, attached at their outer ends to the vertical front members of the swing 'at the waist and at the hips respectively; each set; of straps, 13 and 14, and the intervening section of the corresponding vertical strap forming an open triangle whose base is near the side of the wearer and whose apex is in front of the wearer; To complete the harness there is a...

strap, 15, extending across the wearer at the chest, the same being fastened to the straps of the swing and having a snap hook or:

16, at the middle.

' All of the straps are made adjustable so as to permit the harness, to be-quickly made larger or smaller to suit the figure of the person'who is to wear it. Thus, at the point other. readily detachable fastening device,

where the strap, 9, joints the strap lO, in the vicinityof the waist of the wearer, and at the point where the" strap, 10, similarly joins; the strap, 9, are buckles, 17, which will permit the effective length of the swing to be varied. The adjustment in the lower front cross connect on may convenientlybe secured by suitable fastening means,

1 ,sergvee by permitting the snap hook, 12, on'one con-v necting member to be engaged in any one of a series of openings, 18, in a fitting, 19, arranged at the apex of the opposite triangular connecting member. The chest strap may, conveniently be provided with a buckle, 20, for adjusting its length. I

The harness is attached to the pack preferably by stitching those portions of the straps, 9, 10 and 15, which lie across the back of the wearer to the'section, 1, of the pack at such points that there will be a direct connection between the harness and the metal frame in the ack. The supportlng straps, 21, from the parachute are attached to the harness by suitable fastening means, preferably snap hooks, 22, of a peculiar construction, at the shoulders.

In getting into the harness or taking it off the arms of the wearer must be slipped through the shoulder loops of the straps, 9 and 10, lying above the chest strap, 15. In order to'make these arm openings large and thus permit the harness to be readily put on and off, I prefer to attach the strap, 15, to the straps, 9 and 10, in the manner illustrated in Figs. 6 and 7. Referring to these figures, it will be seen that the strap, 15, after passing forwardly, crosses the strap 9 or 10, as the case may be, and continues across the chest for a considerable distance. The end of the strap, 15, is then passed through the corresponding member of the fastening device, 16, and is carried back to the strap 9 or 10 where it is securely fastened 23. When the chest strap is fastened around the body of the wearer its effective length is the distance between the two members of the fastening device, 16, without regard to the end sections, 24. When the strap is unfastened, however, its effective length becomes augmented by the end sections, 24,, and therefore the front ends of the chest strap hang down in the form of loops at the time the wearer is getting into or out of'the harness and he can freely slip his arms into and out of the shoulder loops.

It is often advantageous for the para- -chutis t to be able to release himself from the parachute just, before landing. This may conveniently be accomplished by making the snapv hooks, 22, in the form illustrated in Figs.'11-and 12. When the parachute is descending, the snap hooks, 22, take vertical positions as illustrated in Fig. 11. These snap. hooks arelso formed thatif the parachutist takes hold of the supporting straps,

21, at points just above the snap hooks, the

latter may readily be unfastened without letting go of thestraps so that, at the proper time, they may be unhooked from the hare ness. In the arrangement shown, the snap hook is provided with a sliding bolt, 25, normally held in its locking position by a spring,

I memes 1. I 26, the bolt being arranged vertically durv Q ing the descent of the parachute. Thebolt is provided with a laterally-projecting head or finger-piece, 27 havinga projection, 28, extending in the direction of the length of the bolt. In the socket, 29, into which the free end of the bolt. is entered when in' 'a locking position is a spring, 30, acting in opposition to the spring, 26, and stronger than the latter. In the body of the hook,'behind theprojection, 28, is a notch, 31, into which the projection, 28, is dapted to be pressed. by the spring, 30, so as to lock the bolt against turning. The projectionhas a cam shaped face; 32, which permits the projec tion to be lifted out of the notchand the bolt to be turned when thepara'chutist presses laterally on the head or finger-piece, 27, with a fingeror thumb; When the bolt is turned through an angle of 1180 degrees so as to bring the head and projection into the position illustrated in dotted lines in Fig. 11, the

shank portion of the member 27 and the prof jection register; with a slot, 33, communicatm with the. bolt chamber and therefore the b0 t may be moved upwardly into an.unlock ing position. It will thus be seen that normally the bolt is locked against accidentaldisplacement because the member 27' and the projection, 28, serve as stops to prevent it from being retracted. When the hook is to be unfastened the bolt must first be turned through an angle of 180 degrees and it may "then be lifted Instead of making the connection between the lower ends of the vertical" portions of'the swing of the harness in the manner heretofore described, it may in some cases be suflicient to use a single strap fastened to-the strap, 9, and another single strap attached to thestrap, 10, as illustrated in Fig. 10.

- It will usually be the-practiceto open a pack of the character described by means of a pull cord, 36', as illustrated in Fig. 2, lying along one of the straps of the harness and having a ring, .37, which may conveniently be grasped by the parachutist, to operate the cord. In Figs, 8 and 9 I have illustrated an arrangement which will permit the pack 1 to] be opened in this manner while at the same time providing means to connect the pull cord to soinejpart of an airplane or other .vehicle of the-air, if desired, so that the parachute will be opened automatically when the pa'rachutist jumps. Referring to these figures, 37 represents a ring of compara'tivelylarge diameter made out of a tube having a slot, 38, extending around the same at the'inner diameter. The pull cord,

36, extends, through an openingin the periphery of the ring and is provided with a knot, 3 9,- within the tubular section thereof.

An additional "lengthIof-c'ord or cable, 40,

beyond the knot, is then coiledlip within the The free end of thepart, 40, of the. cord or 1 cable is provided with a snap hook, 42, or

the like which, when the parts are assembled, projects out-of the slot in the' tube so a as to be in position tobe grasped for the purpose of withdrawing the attached length of cord or cable. I

' I claim:

1. A harness comprising a U-shaped Y swing made up of approximately vertical front members and a lower cross member adapted to serve as the seat of the swing, the

I upper ends of said front members being carried rearwardly and then continuing as back members diagonally frbIn-one side to the other, each back member being secured'to the opposite front member at about the waistline ofv the harness,. a breast strap, and a direct cross connection between the lowerends of the front members adapted to exthe wearer. M

2. ,A harness comprising a U-shaped swing made up of approximately vertical front members and a lower cross member adapted to serve as the seat of the swing, the

upper ends of said frontmembersbeing cartendacross the lower part of the trunk of ried rearwardly and then continuing as back a members diagonally. from one side to. the

other, each back member being secured to the opposite front member at about the waistline of the harness, abreast strap,-a direct cross connection between the lower ends of the front members adapted to :extend across the lower part of the trunkof the wearer, .means for adjusting the effective length-of the swing, andmean's' for adjusting the efi'ective length of said cross con nection.

3. A harnesscompri'sing a U-shaped' swing made up of approximatelyvertical front members and a, lower cross member.

adapted to serve as the seat of the swing, the upper" ends of said front members being carriedrearwardly and then continuing as back members. diagonally from one side to? the other, each back member being secured to the opposite front member at about the waistline of the harness, and a cross connection between the lower ends of said front members comprising two devices connected by adetachable fastening, each ofsaid dewardly and upwardly as an approximate continuation"- of the cross member of the swing, together with a strapextending for- 'wardly and'downwardly as an approximate continuation of the corresponding bac member; J

.. A harness comprising a U-sliaped sw ng made up of approximately vertical vices consisting of a strap extending for-' fnfint members'and, a'lowencro'ss member adapted to serve as the seat "of the swing, the upper ends. of said front members being carried rearwardly and then continuing as back members diagonally from one side to the other, each back member being secured to the opposite front member at about the waistline of the harness, a breast strap attached to said back members and extending to the front and across said front mem- 10 ,bers, each of the ends of the breast strap being folded backwai'dly underneath the main portion of the breast strap and being secured to the corresponding front swing member so as to leave the overlying portion of the breast strap free of direct connection with the corresponding front member.

In testimony whereof, I sign this specification.

FLOYD SMITH. 

